Shop With Style

For thousands of years, women have been utilizing various oils, essences, and balms to enhance their scent. Before that, well…we’re afraid things were pretty stinky. Today, though, women are spoiled for choice in perfumes! And therein lies the challenge…with the holidays approaching, and hundreds of perfumes on the market to choose from, how do you find the best ones for you? The answer is actually simpler than you might imagine. Your style in fashion is the key in unlocking your ideal fragrance this Fall!

• Fun and Flirty – You are definitely girly. You love playing up your feminine side. Then sugary and fruity fragrances are for you! Your fragrance should highlight notes of pear, sugarcane, vanilla bean, passion fruit, plum, and/or caramel. Some leading contenders: Prada Candy Kiss, Yves Saint Laurent Black Opium, and Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb Fireworks.
• Classic and Elegant – You are very ladylike. You gravitate towards the classic wardrobe choices, like cashmere cardigans and pearls. Your fragrance will evoke images of Grace Kelly and Audrey Hepburn, with their notes of iris, peonies, jasmine, lily, and mimosa. Some leading contenders: Jo Malone London Mimosa & Cardamom, Chanel Chance Eau Vive, and Gucci Bamboo.
• Sexy and Glam – Your chosen weapons on a Friday night out are a killer pair of stilettos and a stunning LBD. You don’t mind getting attention…in fact, you love it! Your fragrance will have loads of spice to it, just like you! Look for notes of black pepper, leather, incense, saffron, and cinnamon. Some leading contenders: Marc Jacobs Decadence, Dior J’Adore Touche de Parfum, and Dolce & Gabbana Velvet Exotic Leather.
• Modern and Bold – Your fashion and accessories are always very now. You dare to wear even the boldest colors, patterns, and cuts without a second thought. Your fragrance will make a statement, as you do every time you walk into a room. Look for notes of lush florals combined with more masculine scents like sandalwood, cedar, and amber. Some leading contenders: Michael Kors Rose Radiant Gold, Tom Ford Noir Pour Femme, and Donna Karan Liquid Cashmere Black.
• Boho Chic– You epitomize the free spirit in every woman. If the style is loose and flowy, with rustic or ethnic prints, it’s fabulous to you. Your fragrance will be spicy and earthy, with notes of patchouli, pepper, citrus, and sandalwood. Some leading contenders: Tory Burch Absolu, Lancome La Vie Est Belle Eau de Parfum, and Calvin Klein Euphoria Essence.

You’re seeing it everywhere right now. The dark lip trend is in magazines, on the runways, even strutting up and down the city streets and sipping at the local coffee shop. You might be thinking, “That trend isn’t for me. I’ll never be able to pull that look off.” But guess what? You soooo can!  And here’s how…

• Pick the right shade – Rest assured, there is a lush, dark hue for each and every skin tone out there. If you have fair to medium tone skin, try versions of purple-based merlot colors. For those with medium to olive skin tones, try hues of burgundy with a more terra cotta base. Deep tone skin can really push the boundaries of deep and dark, so try a merlot with a bit of black or brown.
• Exfoliate, Exfoliate, Exfoliate – You’ll hear this tip in almost every lip color guide…because it honestly makes a huge difference to how color glides on and looks. If your lips are dry, cracked, and flaky, any lip color will get stuck in the cracks and crevices…but a dark lip color will look positively atrocious. Scrub gently with a product like Fresh Sugar Lip Polish, or Bliss Fabulips. You can also use something simple like olive oil and sugar. Then wipe with a warm, damp cloth and follow with a non-waxy moisturizer.
• Check your upper lip – You may not think it will make a difference, but trust us, it will. Wearing a dark lip color will draw attention to…yep, you guessed it…your lips. Not only can the dark color get snagged on the tiny hairs, but the hairs can also cast a shadow on that upper lip. Both of which will draw the wrong type of attention. And bleaching the hair won’t work. So, go the distance and remove the hair completely.
• Let your skin glow – Dark lips will tend to highlight any blotchiness or imperfections in the skin, so even it up and make it glow as much as possible. That means scrubbing and exfoliating your face, removing any little patches of dry skin, then applying a skin brightening BB or CC cream, which will also help to even things up and get you glowing. After all, you want a clean, even canvas for those bold lips!
• Even the base – Everyone’s lips have some sort of natural hue, and sometimes, that hue can throw off a perfectly wonderful deep Winter lip color. So after applying foundation, dab on a bit to your lips and blend. You’re not looking to completely white-out your own hue, you just want to tone it down a bit so that the lip color reads true when you apply it.
• Strategically line – Lining when applying a dark lip color can be tricky. If you make a mistake, it will be very The best way to line a dark lip is to start with a nude color. Line just outside your natural lip line and blend away from your lip. The will not only help to keep the lip color from running, it will also make the color itself pop. Next, apply a liner in a similar shade to your lip color to just the area of your cupid’s bow and the middle portion of your bottom lip. Next, apply the lip color with a lip brush, to give you more control over color placement.

And there you go! Perfectly luscious, perfectly beautiful deep, dark lips for the Winter season.

Let’s continue our exploration of the best and brightest of makeup and beauty’s all-time faves. These are the products that have been propelled into the must-have Hall of Fame, not only due to their overwhelming popularity, but for their constant high-quality performance. To get on this list, it’s not enough for a product to have a season of “gotta have it.” Nope. To be named here, a product must go the distance, over and over, to prove its worth. Maybe they came onto the market last year…or last decade…but they all have earned their spots on this list, as well as in our hearts!

•             Butter London Nail Foundation – Over the past few years, we’ve come to know and love the bold colors with the cheeky British names. They all really hold their vibrancy, and wear so well. But one of the most unassuming looking Butter London products is also one of the most amazing! The Butter London Nail Foundation works behind the scenes to flawlessly smooth out any ridges and bumps so your finished product has a perfect satin finish.

•         Bare Escentuals Powder Foundation – When this foundation first came on the market, no one quite knew what to make of it. A powder foundation… with medium coverage… that was actually good for your skin? What is this magic?! But Bare Essentuals has proven itself year after year, garnering more devotees by the day. No caking. No creasing. No breakouts. No oil. Perfection. Swirl, tap, and buff!

•           The Original Beautyblender – It looked like a gimmick at first. And it’s certainly had dozens of copy-cat products claiming to work as well. But there really is only one Beautyblender. The pointy end gets in all those tight spots next to your nose and around your eyes, while the rounded end smooths out all the other spots. The tap-and-rock method, thanks to the sponge’s unique consistency, really helps to get that foundation and concealer blended flawlessly. Airbrush perfect.

•            L’Occitane Shea Butter Hand Cream – Yes, it’s French, and that does secretly make us feel extra fancy when using it. But that alone wouldn’t get the L’Occitane Shea Butter Hand Cream on this list. The lush 20% shea butter formula absorbs quickly and completely, and the smell is divine! Our purse would feel empty without it (and our hands would definitely be cracked and dry)!

•            Ole Henriksen Truth Serum – For years, beauty science has been trumpeting the effectiveness of Vitamin C in increasing cell turnover and eliminating dark spots and acne scars. But the real genius of the Ole Henriksen Truth Serum is the smooth, fast absorbing gel. Your skin feels instantly moisturized, while under the surface, that Vitamin C is hard at work making you even more beautiful!